Biyombo had four blocks in the game, limiting Cleveland to just 20 points in the paint while they had a combined 106 in Games 1 & 2. Golden State finished with 15 offensive rebounds and 15 second-chance points.
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The Raptors shot 9-18 from three-point range in the first half.
Kyle Lowry unwittingly created a controversy for his Toronto Raptors by disappearing to the locker room during Game Two of the Eastern Conference Finals, but his coach is backing him publicly.
Casey got his back up when a reporter in the post-game news conference suggested his team looks defeated. Cory Joseph made tough and timely shots and played great defence.
But the brick wall that is Biyombo, who wagged a finger like Dikembe Mutombo on his four blocked shots, was the Raptors’ motor, thriving on the energy of the Air Canada Centre crowd and giving it back to them in spades. “We’re supposed to be better at home”. Thompson and Joseph were given technicals on the play.
Ten wins in as many games in this postseason prove how eager the Cavaliers are to compete for the Larry O’Brien trophy. They are the fifth team among those 10 to win Game 3 of the series.
It wasn’t good for the Raptors in Game 1 and Game 2, but it was a total turnaround as the Raptors beat the Cavs on home turf cutting their series deficit to 2-1.
With LeBron James producing another overpowering performance, the Cleveland Cavaliers routed Toronto 108-89 on Thursday, stretching their playoff record to 10-0 and moving closer to an NBA Finals return. Irving later told reporters at ACC that he had the wind knocked out of him, and that he is fine. They played well enough, and the Raptors really stunk.
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The victory cut the Cavs’ series lead to 2-1, and marked Toronto’s first ever win in the conference finals. It was the first time in nine quarters that Toronto had outscored Cleveland, helped in large part by the regression of the Cavs’ previous dead-eye shooting. So far if you’ve been watching the Cleveland Cavaliers live stream or the Toronto Raptors live stream, then you may be pleased or disappointed (depending on which team you’re rooting for) to know that the Cleveland Cavaliers have won both games so far against the Toronto Raptors. They went at 35-year-old Richard Jefferson when he switched onto them, punished the Cavs’ floor-spacing second unit on their end of the floor, and finally followed up a high-scoring first quarter with a big second quarter. All the stuff that Casey had said after two embarrassing losses – that his team wasn’t quitting, that they still believed in themselves – suddenly didn’t seem quite so naïve. They’ll have some extra encouragement on Monday night when Game 4 tips off because rapper and Raptors’ global ambassador (whatever that means) Drake will be in attendance. DeRozan, Lowry and Joseph combined for 66 of their team’s 99 points, shooting 53 percent. The supporting cast has done a fairly decent job but it is the starters who have lifted them up. Exhausted and battered, it was one of the few times on this night Irving was left all alone.
